A close-up, candid video-still portrait of chef Nicole Hoffer. They are smiling broadly and looking slightly off-camera with a joyful expression. They have blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail with loose bangs framing their face. They are wearing large, transparent-frame glasses, bright red lipstick, and a white chef's coat. A dark-blue scarf with a gold star pattern is visible around their neck. The background is softly blurred, showing a bright, neutral-toned interior kitchen environment.
Nicole Hoffer of Mai Sweet Basil Credit: Mai Sweet Basil / YouTube

Nicole Hoffer could probably sing her way out of a hostage situation, and this week she plays a show on Central Avenue, a part of Tampa that’s seen performances from some of the greatest American vocalists of all time.

Her sound is familiar to local jazz fans who’ve seen her at DI Coffee Bar, or alongside Mai Sweet Basil and the Rod Alnord Quartet, and she tops this free show that’ll be over by dinner time.

There’s no cover to see Nicole Hoffer at Tampa’s Black History Museum in Tampa on Tuesday, June 16.

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This article appears in June 11 – 17, 2026.

Read his 2016 intro letter and disclosures from 2022 and 2021. Ray Roa started freelancing for Creative Loafing Tampa in January 2011 and was hired as music editor in August 2016. He became Editor-In-Chief...